“Thank you,” James says, “I appreciate that.” Returning outside, he informs Miko they will be staying there. They then take their horses and mule around back, getting them settled into the stable. Taking their bags with them, they return to the inn and find the room at the end of the hallway. Two beds again, which makes Miko happy. They put their bags next to their respective beds before heading back to the common room for dinner.
They enjoy a quiet dinner of roast fowl, bread and ale. After downing the last of his ale, James says, “I think I’ll go for a walk” Glancing toward Miko he asks, “Like to come with me?”
“Sure, okay,” Miko agrees. “Maybe we could find some more tarts?”
“You never know,” replies James, smiling at his friend.
They leave the inn and stroll through the streets. During their walk they get propositioned by several women, all of which look rather skanky to James.
After turning down the fifth offer of cheap sex, Miko says, “There’s something I’ve noticed about you.”
“What’s that?” asks James.
“You are never with a woman. Don’t you like them?” Miko inquires. “Or is it because you were mutilated?”
“I like women, most definitely,” he replies, then comes to a stop when the last little bit Miko said finally registers. Turning a quizzical look to Miko he asks, “What do you mean ‘because I was mutilated’?”
Looking a little embarrassed, Miko says, “Well, when we took our baths the other night, I couldn’t help but notice that a part of you had been cut off.”
“What are you talking about?” James asks confused. Then it hit him, he was circumcised. He starts laughing and says, “What you are referring to was done when I was born. It’s a custom with my people that when a boy is born, such is done to him.”
Looking aghast, Miko asks “What for?”
“It’s the common belief that if it’s removed then there will be less chance for infection during his life,” answers James. “In fact there is one religion back home that mandates it.”
“I’m glad I wasn’t born there,” Miko states with conviction, unconsciously covering himself.
“There are times when I wish it hadn’t been done to me too, but there’s not a whole lot I can do about it now. But rest assured, it still works as well as anybody else’s and it doesn’t affect my desire for sex.”
“Then why don’t you go after the women?” he asks.
“I was raised to believe sex is not a casual thing,” he explains. “And it’s definitely something you should never pay anyone to do. Also, there are certain diseases that you can get from such activities that really mess you up bad, even kill you.”
“The boys I used to hang around with, whenever they got hair between their legs, started going after the girls,” says Miko.
“Yeah, I knew guys back home that were like that too,” admits James. “But you should always do what you think is right, no matter what others may think or do.”
James resumes walking and Miko is silent for a while, thinking about what he just said. They eventually arrive at the main marketplace which is still surprisingly busy even though night has already fallen. Several performers scattered around, one is a juggler who has several different objects coursing through the air simultaneously. Next to him sits a chair with a knife sitting half on and half off the seat. At one point the juggler adds the knife to the dance of items in the air with an upward kick of his foot. As it flies up from where it had sat upon the chair, the onlookers ooh and ahhh. When he catches it and incorporates it within the pattern of the other items, they erupt in applause, several tossing coins into a hat resting on the ground before him.
They remain to watch as the juggler continues keeping the items airborne while twice people tossed other objects which he also incorporated into his aerial display. Miko is completely fascinated by the man so they stay there for a little while watching him. By the time they move on, the juggler had seven items in the air and didn’t look like he was going to stop anytime soon. James gave Miko three coppers to drop in the hat.
As they make their way through the marketplace, they momentarily stop to observe other performers, though none are as talented as the juggler. While they pause to watch a fire breather, James notices a small tent almost hidden in a dark corner of the market. Inside is a woman sitting at a table. Before her atop the table rests what looks to be a crystal ball. She looks just like a fortune teller right out of an old movie, he thinks to himself. Curiosity gets the better of him.
“Miko, I’ll be over there,” James says as he points toward the small tent.
“Alright,” Miko acknowledges. “I’m going over to watch the monkey.” He points over to where a man has a monkey doing tricks and wearing a funny little outfit.
“Don’t get lost,” James says before he makes his way through the crowd over to the tent and enters.
“Close the curtain so we may have some privacy,” the woman says to James as she indicates the chair sitting across from her. “Come, sit down and I’ll look into your future.”
He unhooks the curtain and lets it fall, then walks over to the chair and sits.
“Place your hands upon the table, next to the ball with your palms up.” When James has done so, she rests her hands upon his and says, “Now look into the ball and make your mind blank, let it drift as it will.”
He stares into the crystal ball, but all he sees is the crystal ball.
“You must relax,” she tells him, giving him a reassuring smile. He does his best and slowly his mind clears, his body relaxes.
She stares into the ball as she says, “I see a great future for you, one of power and fame.”
“Really?” he asks as he tries peering closer into the ball but fails to see anything.
She looks up from the ball and says, “The ball does not lie. Now, gaze deeper within its depths.”
He stares into the ball as she says, “I see love and happiness for you.” When he looks up to her she meets his eyes and says, “And not too far away.”
“She looks to be a daughter of a rug maker,” she says and then glances up to see his reaction. Then says, “Or possibly a horse trader.”
“Where can I find her?” he asks.
“Back home,” she says. “Where you were born.”
Fake! he thinks to himself. There aren’t any such back where I come from. “Thank you,” he says, then begins removing his hands from the table.
Suddenly, her hands spasm and clenches his tightly, preventing him from leaving the table. Then she says, “I can see that you have come a great distance and not by choice.”
Inside the ball, a deep red color blossoms from within its center. He sits back down, intrigued by the show if not by the accuracy.
“You have many questions,” she says, her voice becoming more distant, “and few answers. You are on a quest, a quest for answers.”
A chill runs down his back, she’s hitting closer to the mark now. The deep red color continues to grow and starts to slowly swirl throughout the ball.
“I see a long road but you are not alone, another walks with you,” she says, her voice changing, growing harsh and raspy. “He will be the key, a lock must be opened.”
Nervous, he hesitates. On the verge of leaving yet drawn to see what will happen.
The red swirling begins to churn faster and a subtle pulse can be seen coming from within. Gasping, her body jerks, hands tightening around his in a grip of surprising strength. He tries to free his hands but is unable to break away. Her grip grows uncomfortable.
Looking at her he sees that her features have changed subtly, yet unmistakable. With a voice growing less human she says:
With the star, seal your fate,
A giant knocks upon the gate.
Her voice rises in volume and pitch, the throbbing red vortex in the ball swirls like a maelstrom. The pulsing continues to grow and becomes much more pronounced with each word she utters.
Pillars of F
lame dispel the night,
Out of darkness, blossoms a light.
Her grip on his hands becomes painful. Eyes wide with the pupils rolled back into her head, her visage completely unnerves James. Scared, he wants nothing more than to break free. Struggle though he may, her grip on his hands is simply too strong.
A friend’s wrath you shall feel,
Destroy the land so it may heal.
The crystal of the ball is now completely infused with red and the swirl is no longer apparent. Now a solid red, it pulses, keeping in time with the words being spoken by the woman.
Return the lost, stones to dust,
The table begins to vibrate, the pulsing becomes more pronounced, actually bathing the entire tent in an eerie pulsating red glow. In a voice that sounds as if it’s being stretched to its limit, she cries:
Remember… in all… your heart… to trust!
She screams as the crystal ball explodes, sending shards in all directions. Several score along his arms and face. At the shattering of the ball, she falls backward and releases the iron grip she had on his hands. Her chair tips over backward and the woman hits the floor where she lies unmoving.
James comes around the table to her and sees that she’s still alive, but unconscious. Amazed, he discovers a streak of white going through her black hair that hadn’t been there before. Droplets of blood begin to well out of the many spots on her arms and face where she was struck by the shattering of the ball. He lifts her from the floor and carries her over to a pile of pillows lying in the corner of the tent and tries to makes her comfortable. When he has her settled, he looks around the tent at the mess the shattering of the ball has caused. Shards of crystal are everywhere.
He begins to remove the shards from her skin when her eyes fly open. “Who are you?” she asks him.
“You were telling me my future,” James replies soothingly so as not to alarm her. “You must have gone into a trance or something. Then suddenly the ball exploded and you fell over unconscious.”
“That has never happened to me before,” she says, frightened. She looks around her tent at the scattered pieces of shards and breaks down into tears. “What am I to do?” she wails. “I have no ball! How am I going to get people to come in here? How am I to live?”
“I am sure you could still make it work,” James assures her. “There are many different ways in which to tell people’s futures.”
She doesn’t look convinced. “But seeing in the ball is what I am known for. They won’t believe in me if I try another way.”
“Can you get another one?” he asks.
“They are hard to come by and expensive. This one cost me over fifteen golds,” she says, breaking down as sobbing comes over her again.
Reaching into his pouch he pulls out fifteen golds and gives them to her. “Here, take this and get started again.”
Taking his coins, she again starts to cry only this time in gratitude. “Oh thank you, how can I ever repay you?”
“Just help others, that is all I ask,” he replies.
He comes to his feet and looks around at the shambles that is her tent. “When the tale gets around that while you were reading someone’s future, the ball shattered and that white streak manifested itself in your hair, you may have more business than ever before.”
She reaches up and touches her hair. “A white streak?” she asks incredulously.
Coming over, he touches her hair above her forehead and says, “Yes. It starts here and goes all the way back. Kind of makes you look mysterious.”
She pulls some of her hair down before her eyes and looks at the white strands. “Mysterious?” she says and starts to calm a bit.
“Will you be alright now?” he asks.
“Yes,” she says. “I think I may.”
“Then I must go,” he says. “Thank you for the telling.”
“You are welcome sir,” she replies. “Was it helpful? I don’t remember.”
“It didn’t make a lot of sense,” he says, “but who knows with such things?” He then turns and walks out of the tent, pushing aside the curtain that had blocked the entrance. Outside he finds Miko still watching the performing monkey who is now riding a wagon being pulled by a small dog to the laughter of the bystanders.
When he reaches Miko’s side, Miko turns and sees his face in the torchlight. “What happened to you?” he exclaims.
“Oh, I just had my fortune told and there was a little accident,” he explains. “I’m okay, nothing to worry about.”
Turning back to watch the monkey, Miko says, “This little guy is amazing, he can do all kinds of tricks.”
“I’m sure he can, but maybe it’s about time we head back to the inn,” James tells him.
“Alright,” he agrees. “What about those tarts?”
“I almost forgot.” Glancing around the market, James tries to find a bakery but can’t make one out. “Let’s walk around and if we don’t find one, we’ll just head back to the inn, agreed?”
“Agreed.” Miko leads the way and though they fail to find a bakery, they do come across a man selling what reminds James of a cinnamon roll but instead of cinnamon it has a red jelly spread across the top and in the middle. They buy six and head back to the inn. Eating as they go, they both agree that they are delicious and end up eating them all before returning to the inn.
That night as he lies in bed, James has trouble falling asleep, the words of the woman still echo in his mind. ‘Another walks with you, he will be the key, a lock must be opened’. That’s got to be a reference to Miko. But what lock will he open? He’s not a thief.
The rest of it doesn’t make much more sense:
With the star, seal your fate,
A giant knocks upon the gate.
Pillars of Flame dispel the night,
Out of darkness blossoms a light.
A friend’s wrath you shall feel,
Destroy the land so it may heal.
Return the lost, stones to dust,
Remember in all your heart to trust.
I’m sure it will make sense after it would have been useful to know, he reasons. After a while of wrestling with it, he finally succumbs to sleep.
Early the next morning, they gather their things and head down to the common room. There they discover the lower floor of the inn to be aswarm with people. The buzz of conversation flowed throughout the room like a hive of excited bees.
“…I didn’t believe it myself at first…”
“…lucky to be alive if you ask me…”
“…simply incredible, you should see her…”
Spying one of the serving girls, James catches her attention and asks, “What’s going on?”
Giving him a surprised look, she says, “Haven’t you heard? Serenna’s ball exploded during a foretelling last night.”
“Oh really?” he asks. “Is she alright?”
“She’s fine,” replies the serving girl, “though her face and arms were struck when the ball exploded. No one knows what happened to the person for whom she was doing the foretelling.” Suddenly, she notices his face and the numerous fresh puncture marks it bears. She looks at his arms and sees matching wounds there as well. “You?”
“I’m afraid so, but let’s not make too much out of it okay?” he asks. “I would just like some breakfast.”
“Sure thing,” she says as she backs away and heads toward the kitchen. On the way she pauses to whisper to another serving girl who glances over at him with a wide eyed expression. The other serving girl then turns to another person and soon, the conversations within the inn quiet as word of his appearance spreads. Eyes looking fearful take in the wounds caused by the shattering of the ball which dot his face and arms. James was beginning to feel a little self conscious beneath such scrutiny.
“Wonder why such a reaction?” Miko asks.
“Don’t know,” he replies. “Let’s just eat and then get out of here fast.”
Beginning to feel uncomfortable too, Miko
says “Yeah, it’s getting kind of creepy.” Taking a seat at a small table in the corner of the common room, they wait for the serving girl to appear.
When their meal arrives, the girl sets it on the table then backs away fast. Wishing for nothing else but to rid themselves of the watchful crowd, they eat their meal quickly. Most of those within the inn, seeing that James is not behaving in any way out of the norm, return to the conversations they were having before.
James can’t help but notice the way everyone continues to cast glances their way. After a bit, he also notices that the crowd within the inn seems to be getting larger. Over in the corner are several youngsters talking amongst themselves. One girl from the group, who couldn’t be more than twelve, is given an encouraging shove from another as she timidly makes her way over to his table. She stops several feet away and asks nervously, “Can I ask you a question?”
James says, “Sure, what would you like to know?”
With eyes wide and a slight tremble in her voice she asks, “Is it true that a demon came and Serenna had to fight it off or it would have eaten your soul?”
“What?” he cries incredulously.
“You didn’t tell me that part,” Miko says.
“That’s because it never happened.” Turning to the girl he asks, “Just where did you hear that story?”
“Everyone is talking about it,” she says. “They say you made a pact with the demon and that it was coming to collect!”
“That’s absurd!” he replies. Then he notices how every eye in the inn is directed his way. From their expressions, it is clear they had heard the same thing.
Standing up, James turns toward the crowd and raises his voice saying, “Despite the rumors you may have heard, there was no demon and I have never made a pact with one.”
“But I heard the story from Serenna herself,” one lady says from the crowd. “She’s been telling it all morning.”
“Oh, we’ll just see about that!” Grabbing his things he says, “Miko, we’re leaving.” Heading out to the stable to collect their horses and mule, curious onlookers follow and watch as they make ready to ride. It’s with great relief when he is able to mount and leave the courtyard. A few people attempt to follow but he kicks the side of his horse and quickly leaves them behind.
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